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Tuesday, June 26, 2012

The Unseen

By Julie Noemi Benitez
It is said that not forgiving someone, being jealous, bitter, mad, etc... Against someone is like You drinking poison and expecting the other person to die.
These negative things kill slowly and ruin all that is good within you!
The problem with such emotions is that, they can creep on you without you even being aware; they are the things we ourselves don't see sometimes. Maybe that’s why King David prayed

"Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me, and know my anxieties; And see if there is any wicked way in me, And lead me in the way everlasting. ~Psalms 139: 23&24"

David realized that there where things in him that where unknown to him and where dangerous for his spiritual life. Things he could not see, others could not see, ONLY God!!
I get it... Sometimes, people do things which make us justify these emotions, thoughts or actions... Unfortunately they cannot be justified...
An admirable friend once told me as we talked on and on about her testimony, that there came a point in her life where she didn't care about anyone, she was hurt, she wasn't going to forgive, after all she was hurt and it was her right, But someone told her..

Who do you think you are to not have mercy? Do you think you are more than God not to forgive?

Firstly, I’d like to say I am happy that she chose to have mercy & chose to forgive and now she is serving God greatly.
But think about those powerful words... who do you think you are? ...It’s true, who do we think we are, God forgave our sins, He died for us, willingly He forgave us. Isaiah 53:7 says;

He was oppressed and He was afflicted, Yet He opened not His mouth; He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, And as a sheep before its shearers is silent, So He opened not His mouth.

MERCY & LOVE overwhelmed Him, that He went to die for sins He did not deserve. Later on in the chapter in verse 10 it says "it pleased the LORD” to do this great sacrifice to bare something He did not deserve.I understand it’s not easy to forgive something or someone, but you see love and mercy belong to Him and if you ask Him, He will surely give it. Proof?...

In Daniel 9:9 it says; “To the Lord our God belong mercy and forgiveness” & in Matthew 7:7 it says; “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you”.

His LOVE & MERCY does not stop there for God knew it would be hard for us even if it was available to us; Matthew 26: 16 says; “With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible” & in Luke; “The things which are impossible with men are possible with God” (18:27)All we need to do is have a humble heart and ask God for help. David did so in Psalms 51 (my fave!) He said:

Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean;Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. (Psalm 51:7)

We need to pray like this, we need to ask God to come in and clean, to purify our being.God said “Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice. And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you” Ephesians 4:31.God has sent us to Love each other & to forgive each other, to not let bad things eat at us and destroy us, because in the end if we choose to live with these unseen death sentences we are hurting ourselves while the other person lives on in peace.In an article from familydoctor.org it stated this: "Your body responds to the way you think, feel and act. This is often called the “mind/body connection.” When you are stressed, anxious or upset, your body tries to tell you that something isn’t right. For example, high blood pressure or a stomach ulcer might develop after a particularly stressful event, such as the death of a loved one. ...Poor emotional health can weaken your body's immune system, making you more likely to get colds and other infections during emotionally difficult times. Also, when you are feeling stressed, anxious or upset, you may not take care of your health as well as you should. You may not feel like exercising, eating nutritious foods or taking medicine that your doctor prescribes. Abuse of alcohol, tobacco or other drugs may also be a sign of poor emotional health".Scientifically/biologically we can see how we are affected now imagine spiritually.For one if you are a Christian and you do not love or forgive your brethren than it is as though you do not love God or worse you can lose your salvation: Galatians 5:19-21 says; "If anyone says, Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God".To end off I'd like to share two more verses:"But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses." (Matthew 6:15)&“But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you” (Matthew 5:44)
God has sent us to forgive and love those who have hurt us!
So you see, we must let go of all that may be affecting us that is unseen before everyone else & at the very same we must pray and ask God to look at our hearts and clean all that is unseen by us.
Live a life of joy and happiness and let what others do not affect you.
…
Once someone said: Drench yourself in oil (metaphorically speaking) so that all the offenses that are thrown at you slip off… OR think of the ever famous one… Get Crocodile Skin!
I hope this may speak to your heart as it did to mine, Keep working hard towards our final mark which is Jesus!
God Bless You Tons!!
Ps. Thank you to all those who have inspired me and have taught me to strive to know more and learn more in God & those whose testimonies, story, & words of encouragement helped put this together!